“The World Is Looking At Us” - Rep. Yealue Tells Colleagues

“The world is looking at us and to undermine our laws will diminish our standing within the comity of nations and tarnish the image of our country,” Nimba County Representative Garrison Yealue has told colleagues of the House of Representatives.

He added: “We cannot sit supinely and let individuals manipulate our laws.”Yealue made the statement while criticizing some 40 members of the lower House who signed a resolution on Thursday, August 11, declaring House Speaker Alex Tyler recused from presiding over the Plenary. Addressing journalists at a news conference at the Capitol Building in Monrovia on Tuesday, Yealue asserted that while some of the lawmakers are calling for Tyler's recusal, others are requesting him to step down as Speaker.This, according to Yealue, speaks to the fact that the representatives are pursuing “an agenda that is characterized by undefined motives.”Yealue said he rejects the resolution “with the highest condemnation” on grounds that most of the counts are either untrue or based on allegations.He said the resolution has no legal reliance and that those who affixed their signatures to the document have been incoherent in presenting the central truth of their resolution.Quoting the House Standing Rule, Yealue said that the Speaker, Deputy Speaker and other officers of the House may be removed from office “for cause" by a two-third majority of the members of the body.The Nimba County lawmaker said as per the provisions enshrined in Rule 9 and the Constitution of Liberia, “no cause has been established for which they are opting for the Speaker’s recusal or removal.”Speaker Tyler was indicted in May by Criminal Court “C” for his alleged complicity in a bribery scandal emanating from a report of the international corruption watchdog Global Witness, along with other past and current government officials.The dissenting group of representatives is contending that Speaker Tyler steps aside from presiding over plenary until he exonerates himself from the criminal charges levied against him.